Archimede's Screw Archimedes' Screw Archimedes' Screw has been used to lift water to higher levels since ancient times. Archimedes (287-212 B.C.) is the traditional inventor of this device, which was originally used for irrigation in the Nile delta and for pumping out ships. I have seen a nineteenth century Archimedes' screw still at work pumping water in a windmill at Schermerhoorn in the province of North Holland in the Netherlands. It lifted the water a vertical distance of 1 meter. An analysis, using the lifting of marbles instead of water, is used in almost all nineteenth century texts. The lower end of the helical tube dips into a dish of marbles and scoops one up. The helix continues to revolve, and the marble is continually being lifted a short distance up an inclined plane. The frictional forces are small, and the marble keeps rolling down an infinite succession of inclined planes formed by the revolving helix. At the same time the marble resides at the local low spot on the helix, and is carried up the slope by forces perpendicular to its local motion.

The model Archimedes' Screw at the top right is in the Smithsonian Institution collection, and was sold by Queen in 1867 at $5.00. The middle right example is by Benjamin Pike, Jr. of New York, and and is $9.00 in the 1866 catalogue. It is at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky. At the bottom right is an Archimedes' screw demonstration from the United States Military Academy at West Point. This was made by Pixii of Paris, and bought by the Academy in 1829. The example below is also by Pixii, and is in the Smithsonian Institution collection. . Here is a third example of a Pixii Archimedes Screw, this time from the University of Mississippi. This is listed in the 1849 catalogue of Pixii of Paris at 45 francs (about $9.00). This example is in the collection of Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, New York, and may be home-built. An exponential sagging of the tube seems to have taken place.

Archimedes, the Mathematecian - Greeka.com View all Famous people | Next famous personality: El Greco, the famous painter His life We find extremely scarce information about the personal life of Archimedes. From information gathered by historians, we know that he was born in Syracuse Sicily, in 287 BC, when Sicily was still a Greek colony. He spent most of his life in his hometown, except when he went to Alexandria Egypt to study. In Egypt, he devised a new technique of drawing water from the lower level under the ground to the higher level. This method was given the term "hydraulic screw" for bringing water located at extremely lower levels in the ground to the land surface. When Archimedes came back to Sicily, he spent his entire time experimenting and researching. We don't know if he ever got married or had children, but we do know that his mind was continuously buzzing with so many various concepts and theories. All his life, he was passionately and totally involved in his work. Many of his discoveries were the result of problems that were posed to him by the ruler of Sicily that time, King Hiero II.

The Principle of Archimedes The well-known Archimedes Principle used in hydrostatics results from an interesting story. King Hiero had ordered a goldsmith to make him a new crown in the shape of laurel wreath, but he was not sure whether the crown was eventually made only with gold or if gold had been mixed with other metals, like silver. Therefore, he ordered Archimedes to find this out without melting the crown to measure the gold. Archimedes was puzzled for many weeks with this problem but he could find no solution. The answer came unexpectedly one day while Archimedes was taking his bath. He noticed that when he entered the bathtub, the water surface rose up. According to Archimedes, when an object is immersed in liquid, the amount of liquid displaced is equal to the volume of that object. So, by dividing the weight of the object by the volume of liquid displaced by it, this would enable him to find the density of that object. This method could be also used to find the density of the golden crown. It is said that Archimedes was so ecstatic to find out the solution that he ran out on the streets naked to tell the king about his discovery.

On his way, he was crying Eureka!, which in ancient Greek means I have found it!. Archimedes Screw The famous Archimedes Screw used widely even today to draw out liquids from great depths was invented when Archimedes was designing a huge ship for the king that would accommodate almost 600 people, a luxurious garden and a temple of goddess Aphrodite. Such a ship would definitely leak a considerable amount of water through the hull. Archimedes thus developed the "Screw" in such a manner that it would assist in taking out the excess water from the ship. The design of the tool was simple yet effective and had a cylinder containing a revolving screw-shaped blade. It had to be manually rotated to take out the water from the huge vessel. Measuring the circle However, it seemed that the most favorite science of Archimedes was not engineering but mathematics. His greatest achievement in Maths was probably the measurement of the circle. Archimedes measured the circle as being more than 1.7320261 and less than 1.7320512.

As the value is approximately 1.7320508, we understand by this that the measures of Archimedes were impressively accurate. Do not disturb my circles It is a real shame that such a brilliant man had such an unfortunate end. Archimedes was killed by a Roman soldier in 212 BC, during the Second Punic War. The Romans under General Marcus Claudius Marcellus had been besieging the town of Syracuse for two years, when they finally entered the walls. That time, Archimedes was at his home trying to solve a complex mathematical problem. When the Roman soldier got into the house and raised his sword to kill him, the last words of Archimedes were Do not disturb my circles, referring to the circles in the mathematical drawing he had made. Archimedes was buried near Agrigentine gate in Syracuse and at his request a sphere and a cylinder were placed on his tomb. Although in the ancient times, he was not much famous, his manuscripts were translated in the Medieval times and attracted a lot of attention. In fact, Voltaire once said, There was more imagination in the head of Archimedes than in the head of Homer.

More: Archimedes - Biography, Facts and Pictures Archimedes Archimedes was, arguably, the world’s greatest scientist – certainly the greatest scientist of the classical age. He was a mathematician, physicist, astronomer, engineer, inventor, and weapons-designer. As we’ll see, he was a man who was both of his time and far ahead of his time. Artists’ ideas of Archimedes. We do not know what he really looked like. Archimedes was born in the Greek city-state of Syracuse on the island of Sicily in approximately 287 BC. His father, Phidias, was an astronomer. Archimedes may also have been related to Hiero II, King of Syracuse. Advertisements Quick Guide – Archimedes’ Greatest Achievements In the 3rd Century BC, Archimedes: • invented the sciences of mechanics and hydrostatics. • discovered the laws of levers and pulleys, which allow us to move heavy objects using small forces. • invented one of the most fundamental concepts of physics – the center of gravity. • calculated pi to the most precise value known. His upper limit for pi was the fraction 22⁄7.

This value was still in use in the late 20th century, until electronic calculators finally laid it to rest. • discovered and mathematically proved the formulas for the volume and surface area of a sphere. • showed how exponents could be used to write bigger numbers than had ever been thought of before. • proved that to multiply numbers written as exponents, the exponents should be added together. • invented the Archimedean Screw to pull water out of the ground – the device is still used around the world. • infuriated mathematicians who tried to replicate his discoveries 18 centuries later – they could not understand how Archimedes had achieved his results. • directly inspired Galileo Galilei and Isaac Newton to investigate the mathematics of motion. Archimedes’ surviving works (tragically, many have been lost) finally made it into print in 1544. Leonardo da Vinci was lucky enough to see some of the hand-copied works of Archimedes before they were eventually printed. • was one of the world’s first mathematical physicists, applying his advanced mathematics to the physical world. • was the first person to apply lessons from physics – such as the law of the lever – to solve problems in pure mathematics.

• invented war machines such as a highly accurate catapult that stopped the Romans conquering Syracuse for years. He may have done this by understanding the mathematics of projectile trajectory. • became famous throughout the ancient world for his brilliant mind – so famous that we cannot be sure that everything he is said to have done is true. • inspired what we now believe are myths including a mirror system to burn attacking ships using the sun’s rays, and jumping from his bath, then running naked through the streets of Syracuse shouting ‘Eureka’ meaning ‘I’ve found it’ after realizing how to prove whether the king’s gold crown had silver in it. Early Days and Greek Culture The ancient Greeks were the first people to do real science and recognize science as a discipline to pursue for its own sake. Although other cultures had made scientific discoveries, these were made for thoroughly practical reasons, such as how to build stronger temples or predict when the heavens would be right for planting crops or getting married. Today, we would describe the Ancient Greeks’ work as blue skies scientific research. They investigated the world for the sheer pleasure of adding to their knowledge. They studied geometry for its logic and its beauty.

With no practical purpose in mind, Democritus proposed that all matter was made of tiny particles called atoms and that these atoms could not be split into smaller particles. He produced logical arguments for his idea. Archimedes was born into this Greek scientific culture. He must have felt the influence particularly strongly, flowing from his astronomer father. We believe his father was an astronomer because Archimedes says so in his work The Sand Reckoner. Writing about another astronomer’s estimates of the sun’s size, he says: “Pheidias, my father, said the sun was twelve times bigger.” Archimedes spent most of his life in Syracuse. As a young man he had furthered his education in the city of Alexandria in Egypt, where Alexander the Great’s successor, Ptolemy Lagides, had built the world’s greatest library. The Library of Alexandria, with its meeting rooms and lecture halls, had become the focal point for scholars in the ancient world. Some of Archimedes’ work is preserved in copies of the letters he sent from Syracuse to his friend Eratosthenes . Eratosthenes was in charge of the Library of Alexandria, and was no mean scientist himself.

He was the first person to calculate the size of our planet accurately. An artist’s view of Archimedes’ friend Eratosthenes teaching in the Library of Alexandria. Of course, the books in the library would have been scrolls, rather than the codex style shown here. Immersed in the scientific culture of Ancient Greece, Archimedes blossomed into one of the finest minds our world has known. He was the Einstein of his time, or perhaps we should say that Einstein was the Archimedes of his time. An Annoying Mathematician Ignites Curiosity Far into the Future Two thousand years after Archimedes’ time, during the Renaissance and 1600s, mathematicians looked again at his work. They knew Archimedes’ results were correct, but they couldn’t figure out how the great man had found them. Archimedes was very frustrating, because he gave clues, but did not reveal his full methods. In truth, Archimedes enjoyed teasing other mathematicians. He would tell them the correct answer to problems, then see if they could solve the problems for themselves.

A Real Life Indiana Jones Style Discovery The mystery of Archimedes’ mathematics wasn’t solved until 1906, when Professor Johan Heiberg discovered a book in the city of Constantinople, Turkey. (The city is now, of course, called Istanbul.) The book was a Christian prayer book written in the thirteenth century, when Constantinople was the last outpost of the Roman Empire. Within Constantinople’s walls were stored many of the great works of Ancient Greece. The book Heiberg found is now called the Archimedes Palimpsest. Heiberg discovered that the book’s prayers had been written on top of mathematics. The monk who wrote the prayers had tried to remove the original mathematical work; only faint traces of it remained. It turned out that the traces of mathematics were actually copies of Archimedes’ work – a momentous discovery. The Archimedes text had been copied in the 10th century. A false color view of a page from the Archimedes Palimpsest, showing some of the recovered mathematics. Courtesy of The Walters Museum. Archimedes Revealed There were seven treatises from Archimedes in the book including The Method, which had been lost for many, many centuries.

Archimedes had written The Method to reveal how he did mathematics. He’d sent it to Eratosthenes to be lodged in the Library of Alexandria. Archimedes wrote: “I presume there will be some current as well as future generations who can use The Method to find theorems which we have not discovered.” And so twentieth century mathematicians learned just how far ahead of his time Archimedes had been. He had summed series; he had used his discoveries in physics – the law of the lever and how to find centers of gravity – to discover new theorems in pure mathematics; and he had using infinitesimals to do work as close to integral calculus as anyone would get until Newton finally got there 1,800 years later. Archimedes’ Famous Discoveries and Inventions The Archimedes’ Screw One of Archimedes’ marvelous inventions is the ‘Archimedean Screw.’ This device is rather like a corkscrew within an empty tube. When the screw turns, water is pulled up the tube, so the screw can pull water up from a river, lake, or well.

The Archimedes’ Screw Archimedes is thought to have invented this device when he was in Egypt, where it’s still used for irrigation. It’s also helpful for lifting light, loose materials such as ash, grain, sand from a lower level to a higher level and is still used worldwide for a variety of purposes. The Story of the Golden Crown King Hiero II had given gold to a craftsman to make him a crown. The crown he got back weighed the same as the gold given to the craftsman, but King Hiero was suspicious. He thought the craftsman had stolen some gold, replacing it with silver in the crown. He couldn’t be sure, so he sent for Archimedes and explained the problem to him. It was known that gold was denser than silver, so a one centimeter cube of gold would weigh more than a one centimeter cube of silver. The problem was that the crown was irregularly shaped, so although its weight was known, its volume wasn’t. Archimedes is believed to have measured how much the level of water in a cup was raised by sinking, for example, one kilogram of gold in it, and comparing this with one kilogram of silver.

If we did this measurement using modern equipment, we would find the 1 kg of gold would raise the water level by 51.8 ml and the 1 kg of silver by 95.3 ml. So, if King Hiero’s crown weighed 1 kg, and it raised the water level by 52 ml or so, then the crown would be pure gold. If the water level rose more than this, then some of the gold had been replaced by silver. Archimedes found that the crown was a mixture of gold and silver, which was bad news for King Hiero, and even worse news for the King’s craftsman! Archimedes is supposed to have had the idea of how to solve King Hiero’s problem when he was taking a bath, noticing the water level moving as he lowered and raised himself. He was so excited that he leaped up and ran naked through the streets of Syracuse shouting ‘Eureka,’ meaning, ‘I’ve found it.’ It seems that even thousands of years ago, scientists had a reputation for being a little crazy! Calculation of Pi π is the number you get when you divide the circumference of a circle by its diameter.

To calculate a circle’s area, or circumference, you need to know π. Archimedes was intensely interested in calculating the mathematical properties of curved solids, such as cylinders, spheres and cones. To do this, he wanted to learn more about π. We now know that π is an irrational number: 3.14159265358979… the numbers after the decimal point follow no pattern and never end, so an exact value can never be found. Archimedes knew that the circumference of a circle equals 2 x π x r, where r is the circle’s radius. Here is how Archimedes calculated the circumference of a circle of known radius, and hence found π. He imagined a circle, and in his mind drew an equilateral triangle inside it, with each point of the triangle touching the circle. Outside the circle, he drew another equilateral triangle, with each side touching the circle. Archimedes drew a mental image of a circle bounded by triangles. He could easily calculate the perimeter of each triangle, and therefore he knew the circle’s circumference was greater than the inside triangle and smaller than the outside triangle.

Then, using a formula he had devised to calculate the perimeter of a polygon with double the number of sides of the previous polygon, he repeated his calculation, this time for a circle with a regular hexagon inside it, and a regular hexagon outside it. The hexagons enclosed the circle more closely than the triangles had and their perimeters were nearer to the true circumference of the circle. Archimedes drew a mental image of a circle bounded by regular hexagons. In this way Archimedes tightened the limits for the maximum and minimum circumference of the circle. Next, he imagined a circle between two 12-sided regular polygons, then two 24-sided regular polygons, then two 48-sided regular polygons. Finally, Archimedes calculated the circumference of a 96-sided regular polygon inside his circle, and a 96-sided regular polygon outside his circle. A 96-sided regular polygon looks the same as a circle unless you zoom in with high magnification. Is this a polygon, or a circle? Above is a 90-sided polygon. It has fewer sides than the 96-sided polygon Archimedes used for his calculation, but you can see that it looks like a circle to the human eye.

Using the 96-sided polygon, Archimedes found that π was greater than the fraction 25344⁄8069, and less than the fraction 29376⁄9347. For the world at large, he simplified these numbers, losing a tiny amount of precision to say π was bigger than 310⁄71 and smaller than 31⁄7. If we average Archimedes’ best upper and lower limits for π, we get it to be 3.141868115 to nine decimal places. Archimedes’ value of π differs from the value on your calculator by less than 1 part in 10,000. In fact, Archimedes’ value of π of 31⁄7 (this is often written as 22⁄7) was used extensively until it entered a graceful retirement in our digital age. Remember that Archimedes did not actually make measurements for his calculations. They could never have been precise enough. He used pure mind-power to calculate the areas involved in each situation.

Calculation of the Volume of a Sphere Archimedes saw his proof of the volume of a sphere as his greatest personal achievement. His work is remarkable for its similarity to modern calculus. Archimedes gave instructions that his proof should be remembered on his gravestone. We’ve placed this as a separate article here: Archimedes makes his Greatest Discovery The Beast Number Read about how Archimedes invented the Beast Number, a number so enormous that the visible universe isn’t big enough to write it out in full. And all this because he was fed up of people saying that it was impossible to calculate how many grains of sand there were on a beach. We’ve separated this off into a separate article, which you can read here: Archimedes and the Beast Number Death and Legacy Archimedes died during the conquest of Syracuse in 212 BC when he was killed by a Roman soldier. Cicero at Archimedes’ Tomb. Painting by Benjamin West He was buried in a tomb on which was carved a sphere within a cylinder. This was his wish, because he believed his greatest achievement was finding the formula for the volume of a sphere.

Many years later, Cicero, the Roman Governor of Sicily, went looking for the tomb of Archimedes. He found that it had become overgrown with weeds and bushes, which he ordered to be cleared. Today we do not know where Archimedes’ tomb is – it has been lost, probably for ever. Much of his work has also been lost for ever, but what we know of it leaves us in awe of his achievements from so long ago. More than 300 years after Archimedes’ death the Greek historian Plutarch said of him: “He placed his whole affection and ambition in those purer speculations where there can be no reference to the vulgar needs of life.” Archimedes was a great practical scientist, but above all, he lived up to the Greek ethos of carrying out blue sky research. He worked on mathematical problems for the sake of mathematics itself, not to solve practical problems. Funnily enough, all of his discoveries in mathematics ultimately did prove to be useful both practically as well as mathematically.

On his tomb, in addition to the sphere in the cylinder, his name was written in Greek: ΑΡΧΙΜΗΔΗΣ Our Cast of Characters Archimedes lived in Ancient Greece. He was born in about 287 BC and died in 212 BC. Democritus lived in Ancient Greece. He was born in about 460 BC and died in about 370 BC. Eratosthenes lived in Ancient Greece. He was born in about 276 BC and died in about 194 BC. Cicero lived in the Roman Empire. He was born 3 January 106 BC and died 7 December 43 BC. Leonardo da Vinci lived in Italy. He was born 15 April 1452 and died 2 May 1519. Galileo Galilei lived in Italy. He was born 15 February 1564 and died 8 January 1642. Isaac Newton lived in England. He was born 25 December 1642 and died 20 March 1727. Albert Einstein lived in Switzerland, Germany and America.

He was born 14 March 1879 and died 18 April 1955. Advertisements Author of this page: The Doc © All rights reserved. Please use the following MLA compliant citation: "Archimedes." Famous Scientists. famousscientists.org. 1 Jul. 2014. Web.%MINIFYHTMLd8b9cf386e953686874ce33618ddd6ba8%< Further Reading The Archimedes Codex: Revealing The Secrets Of The World’s Greatest Palimpsest Phoenix, 2008 How Archimedes Invented the Beast Number The Extraordinary Ancient Greek Computer Archimedes Makes his Greatest Discovery Archimedes - a Short History Physicist Engineer Inventor Archimedes Archimedes Born in 287 B.C. at Syracuse, Sicily, Archimedes was an engineer, physicist, and astronomer. Not only this, he was a notable scientist, who invented a wide range of machines, when machines were a rarity. One of the most famous mathematicians of all times, Archimedes revolutionized the subject of geometry.

Archimedes Biography Though his exploits in the field of geometry, science, and physics are widely famous, not much is known about his personal life, as all records have been lost. He was so much in love with geometry and his inventions that the last words he uttered were "Do not disturb my circles." He was killed in the Second Punic War by a Roman soldier against the wishes of General Marcellus. Plutarch writes that Archimedes was contemplating a mathematical diagram at the time of his death. His tomb was engraved with the figure of a sphere and cylinder as per his wish. Inventions In the field of mathematics, Archimedes produced several theorems that became widely known throughout the world. He is credited with producing some of the principles of calculus long before Newton and Leibniz. He worked out ways of squaring the circle and computing areas of several curved regions. His interest in mechanics is credited with influencing his mathematical reasoning, which he used in devising new mathematical theorems. He proved that the surface area and volume of a sphere are two-thirds that of its circumscribing cylinder.

He is credited with the invention of Archimedes screw or screw pump, which is a device used to raise the level of water from a lower area to a higher elevation. He is known for the formulation of Archimedes' principle, a hydrostatic principle stating that an object in any liquid is buoyed by force equal to the weight of fluid it displaces. Legend has it that he discovered the principle of buoyancy while taking bath and following the discovery, he ran naked shouting "Eureka, Eureka," meaning I have found it. Using the method of exhaustion, he was able to address irrational numbers, such as square roots and Pi. He showed how to calculate areas and tangents. His mastery of applied mathematics reflects from his work on the Archimedes screw. From his invention of war machines, such as parabolic mirrors, Archimedes claw and death ray and complex lever systems, shows that he played an important role in guarding Syracuse against the siege laid by Romans. Though he could not save Syracuse from being captured by General Marcus Claudius Marcellus and his Roman forces in 212 B.C., his war machines might have delayed the capture. Archimedes himself was killed when the city was captured by the Romans.

Undoubtedly, Archimedes was one of the most brilliant minds of all times. His contributions in the field of geometry, science, and physics truly reflect his genius. He wrote many treatises, but only a few would survive the Middle Ages. Still his work and fame live on. Rumor Has It ï¿½ Archimedes was caught read handed, by his wife, wearing a chicken hat on April Fool's Day inside a chicken coop pecking at some grain yet laughing like a duck. Archimedes: An Ancient Greek Genius Ahead of His Time | Ancient Origins 27 August, 2015 - 23:46 Bryan Hill Archimedes: An Ancient Greek Genius Ahead of His Time (Read the article on one page) Archimedes was a Greek mathematician, scientist, mechanical engineer and inventor who is considered one of the greatest mathematicians of the ancient world. The father of simple machines, he introduced the concept of the lever and the compound pulley, as well as inventions ranging from water clocks to the famous Archimedes screw. He also designed devices to be used in warfare such as the catapult, the iron hand, and the death ray.

Archimedes was one of the world’s first mathematical physicists whose inventions were actually applied to the physical world. The Life of Archimedes: Syracuse and Alexandria Born in Syracuse on the island of Sicily in 287 BC, Archimedes was the son of an astronomer and mathematician named Phidias. Very little is known about his family, early life, and schooling other than that he was educated in Alexandria, Egypt, then the chief center of Greek learning. Alexandria is where Archimedes studied with disciples of Euclid, a famous Greek mathematician, before he returned to Syracuse for the remainder of his life. In the third century BC, Syracuse was a hub of commerce, art, and science. The Ancient Greek biographer, Plutarch, mentions that while in Syracuse, Archimedes offered his services to King Hiero II. It was due to his relation with the king, and his son Gelon, that Archimedes achieved fame. Engraving of Archimedes (1584) ( Wikimedia Commons ) The Archimedes Screw Archimedes is best known for his inventions created during the reign of King Hiero II, such as the Archimedes screw.

Originally developed by the ancient Egyptians, it was a device used to raise water from a lower to higher level which was improved upon by Archimedes. The machine consists of a hollow tube with a spiral that can be turned by a handle at one end. When the lower end of the tube is placed in the hull and the handle turned, water is carried up the tube. Today it is still in use as a method of irrigation in developing countries and used to lift loose materials such as grains. The Archimedes Screw ( Public Domain ) War Comes to Syracuse and Archimedes' Inventions Help Protect the City Situated between Rome and Carthage during the Punic wars (264 BC to 146 BC), Syracuse proved to be in the way of Roman expansion. In 214 BC, pro-Carthaginian factions within the city sided with Carthage against Rome. Not long after this, the Roman army sailed to Syracuse with the intention of destroying the city. Developer Plans to Use Ancient Technology to Harness Hydropower Archimedes helped repel the Romans with his brilliant inventions. He fortified the city walls with military contraptions such as catapults and ballistas which could fire projectiles long distances and attack enemy ships.

These weapons were used in battle and enabled Syracuse to hold out against Rome for about three years. One of the most famous machines invented by Archimedes and used against Roman ships during the siege of the city was the stone throwing crane. Consisting of a rotating beam that sat on a platform, it had a counterweight at one end (i.e. a large stone) and it was suspended by a rope at the other end. As an enemy ship approached the wall, operators of the device released the winch, enabling the load to pass over the wall by rotating the balance beam. When the load hovered over the ship, the rope was cut so that it would fall and cause substantial damage. The Claw of Archimedes A similar invention was the Claw of Archimedes, also known as the Iron Hand. A kind of ancient crane, it had a metal grappling hook at the end of it, could reach over city walls, grab enemy Roman ships and destroy them on the rocks. The Claw of Archimedes was reportedly used in defense of Syracuse although no one knows exactly how it looked. Later Greek and Roman historians, such as Plutarch, Polybius, and Livy spoke of the device in their writings.

Here is a description of the Claw, from the Plutarch’s Lives: At the same time huge beams were run out from the walls so as to project over the Roman ships: some of them were then sunk by great weights dropped from above, while others were seized at the bows by iron claws or by beaks like those of cranes, hauled into the air by means of counterweights until they stood upright upon their sterns, and then allowed to plunge to the bottom, or else they were spun round by means of windlasses situated inside the city and dashed against the steep cliffs and rocks which jutted out under the walls, with great loss of life to the crews. Often there would be seen the terrifying spectacle of a ship being lifted clean out of the water into the air and whirled about as it hung there, until every man had been shaken out of the hull and thrown in different directions, after which it would be dashed down empty upon the walls. Invention : Archimedes Screw Archimedes Screw Main Image: Who invented Archimedes Screw? Archimedes screw which is also known as water screw was invented by the famous Greek mathematician and inventor, Archimedes in 250 B.C.

When was the Archimedes Screw invented? 250 B.C. When was the patent granted on the Archimedes Screw? Francis Petit Smith was granted patent for Archimedes screw in 1883. Who was the patent granted to on the Archimedes Screw? Francis Petit Smith What is Archimedes Screw? Archimedes Screw is a mechanical device used to lift water from one level to another level. An Archimedes screw was included with helix , or spiral fitted inside a cylinder that is open on both sides. The device is named after the inventor Archimedes, who lived in the 3rd century BC. Archimedes screw was used by placing the lower end of the device under water at a slant and a handle, attached to the helix , is turned. Archimedes Screw was a simple mechanical water pump device that consisted of a hollow cylinder which is included with a continuous screw. By using this screw one could enlarge the cylinder size to form a spiral chamber. The device was mounted at a 45 degree angle, and helix was turned. When the helix turned, water level rose and the water passed through a spiral chamber to reach the next level.

Archimedes screw was a traditional device, used for irrigation in the Nile delta and for pumping out water from ships . Based on the length and diameter of the screws used in archimedes device, more than one machine could be used to successively raise the same water. Archimedes screw was generally used for drainage and irrigation purpose, and it is also used in some types of high-speed tools for handling light, loose materials such as grain , sand, and ashes. External References Work and Six Simple Machines Work and Six Simple Machines Work and the Six Simple Machines "Give me someplace to stand, and I will move the Earth," Archimedes What is a Simple Machine 3 History of Simple Machines Part 2 5 S imple machines help us make better use of our muscle power to do work A simple machine produces force and controls the direction of a force. Simple machines help us lift, pull or raise items, change the direction of the force, increase the force, split things, fasten things, and cut things. We all use simple machine s every day, opening a door, turning on the water faucet, going up stairs, or opening a can of paint. Simple machines make work easier. There are six simple machines.

They are: Now complete the "Observe and Report" activity below Remember you can answer questions any way you like...on paper, using a computer or creating a blog, video... When you finished with the activity you must click on the worksheet with the right mouse button and select "back" to return to this book. If you close the page with the X on the upper right hand corner, you will need to re-open the book. Simple Machines History What do you think the first simple machine was? Throughout history, people have learned ways to increase force , change the direction of force, and increase the rate of work . We don't actually know what the first simple machine was, but it was probably a large stick used to move heavy objects (rocks). The lever . Or it could be the sharp rock they used to scrape animal skins, the wedge . 5. Logs were use early in modern building to move huge rocks by rolling them along. These logs became the wheel and axle around 3000 B.C., and were one of the most important inventions in history. The inclined plane and rollers were used in building the great Egyptian pyramids , one of the Seven Wonders of the World .

2.5 million limestone blocks were moved hundreds of miles over 20 years, weighing 2 to 70 tons each. Ramps over one mile long were required to place stones. The lever, rollers, and pulleys were use to build stonehenge, England. Watch how one man thinks Stonehenge and other wonders of the world were built using only simple machines and very little else. Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; white-space: pre;"> Created with CAST's UDL Book Builder Throughout all the early civilizations, including, Lebanon, Peru, Bolivia, and Easter Island, simple machines were used to build magnificent buildings. In Lebanon, temples were built with blocks 64 feet long and 13 feet wide, weighing 1,200 tons apiece, a workforce of 25,000 men was required to raise one stone. The lever , rollers , pulleys , wedges , and the screw were all used early in history. The industrial revolution was sparked by the invention of the steam engine in Great Britain in the 1700s. The industrial revolution helped bring people into the machine age and vastly increased the availability of many kinds of products.

Machines enable people to do work with LESS muscle effort and with greater speed. Want to know more about how the great pyramids were built? This video show what scientist believe happened based on archeological evidence. What is the Science Definition of Work? You are doing work when you use a force to cause motion. Work is the transfer of energy through motion. In order for work to take place, a force must be exerted through a distance. Amount of work done depends on two things: The amount of force (F) exerted. The distance (d) over which the force is applied. Equation for work - W = F x d Work is measured in Joules (N-m) after British scientist James Prescott Joule One Joule = 1 N-m, = Work done when a force of one Newton acts through a distance of one meter. There are two factors to keep in mind when deciding whether work is being done: Something has to move. The motion must be in the direction of the applied force. The amount of work a machine produces equals the force used multiplied by the distance the machine lifts or moves and object. How does a simple machine make work easier? A. Transferring the force from one place to another. B.

Changing the direction of a force C. Increasing the magnitude of a force D. Increasing the distance or speed of a force Watch the video Force Force is a PUSH or a PULL, that causes a change in the motion or shape of an object. Examples: Push open a door, or shove a book across a desk, or the pull of gravity on a ball when you drop it. Words to think about that use force – pushing, pulling, stretching, squeezing, bending, and falling. Forces can be equal – holding a book up in your palm of your hand, or a book laying on the table – Balanced Forces – Your hand or the table pushes up and the book pushes down. Some types of forces; gravity, electricity, magnetism, and friction . Whenever an object is caused to move, whether from a standstill or while already in motion, a force is required. Gravity is a universal force. Gravitational force causes every object to attract every other object; a ball falling to the ground; the moon orbiting the Earth. Every object in the universe exerts a force on every other object; that force is gravity. Created with CAST's UDL Book Builder Friction is a force that opposes motion.

Friction occurs when two substances rub together. Rub your hands together. What did you feel? Why? Heat is a byproduct of friction. The motion of objects is reduced because of friction. Why do you stop swing on a swing? Why does a ball stops rolling? Friction can be reduced by smoothing and polishing the surface of contact, by lubricating surfaces with grease or oil, or by using roller instead of sliding. Sometimes we want to increase frictional forces – When using the brakes on a bike or car, we are increasing friction in order to stop. If there were no friction, your life would be much different. You wouldn't be able to walk (think about walking on ice) or hold things between your fingers. You wouldn't be able to turn the pages of a book, or keep your shoes tied, or stop your car with the brakes. What do you call the force of gravity on your mass? WEIGHT! Two important factors dealing with force are: Mass and Distance, The Earth holds you because it's mass is so large compared to yours, but you do not feel the gravity pull of your neighbor sitting next to you! Force is measured in Newtons and is part of the equation for Work. W = f x d.

Created with CAST's UDL Book Builder One of the earliest and simplest of machines, a large stick would work as a lever to move huge rocks. The lever is essentially a rigid bar that is free to turn about a fixed point called the fulcrum . Every Lever has three (3) parts: Resistance Force - What you are trying to move or lift. Effort Force - The work done by the lever. Fulcrum – A fixed pivot point. Levers are divided into three classes depending on the position of the effort, resistance, and fulcrum. First Class Lever The fulcrum (fixed pivot point) is located between the effort and the resistance forces. Example - SEESAW. The effort and the resistance move in opposite directions. The effort moves down in order to lift the resistance or load. When the fulcrum is closer to the effort than to the resistance, there is a reduction in force but a gain in speed and distance. When the fulcrum is closer to the resistance than to the effort, there is a loss in speed and distance, but a gain in force. When the fulcrum is midway between the effort and the resistance, there is no change in force, speed or distance.

Examples of First Class Levers – seesaw, crowbars, scissors, and claw hammers. Second Class Levers Created with CAST's UDL Book Builder A wedge is a form of an inclined plane which can increase a force. With a wedge, the material (log) remains in place while the wedge moves through it. A wedge can be one sloping surface like a doorstop. This type is called a single incline plane, When a wedge has two sloping surfaces, it is called a double incline plane. An example of this type is the wedge used to split wood for the fireplace. Wedges can be forced between two things to hold them tightly together, like nails holding two pieces of wood together or a doorstop jammed between the door and the floor to create enough friction to hold the door open. When sharpened, the wedge can become a knife or an ax. The tip of a screwdriver (slot head) is a simple wedge. Wedges can be used to split, cut or fasten.

Examples of wedges are: axe head, log splitter, chisel, knife, nails, doorstop, plows, screwdriver and scissors Watch the video Created with CAST's UDL Book Builder A pulley is a grooved wheel that turns around an axle ( fulcrum ), and a rope or a chain is used in the groove to lift heavy objects. A pulley changes the direction of the force – instead of lifting up, you can pull down using your body weigh against the resistance (load, that you are lifting). A pulley may be fixed, movable, or used in combination. The simple pulley gains nothing in force, distance or speed, but it changes the direction of the force. A fixed pulley (attached to something that doesn't move such as the ceiling or wall) acts as a first-class lever with the fulcrum located at the axis, instead of a bar the pulley uses a rope. A movable pulley acts as a second -class lever, the load (resistance) is between the fulcrum and the effort. Examples of pulleys in use – on top of the flag pole, to hoist a sail, to open curtains or mini-blinds, to lift hay into a hayloft.

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Question: Who devised the famous screw, used to raise the level of water?
Answer: Archimedes